But Stephen Green, of the ministry Christian Voice, said: “There is no justification for any of this in the gospels. They do say Joseph was suspicious, but that was it.

“It doesn’t suggest any physical or verbal abuse.

“It’s typical of the fertile imagination you need for something like EastEnders.

“The kids that do nativity plays in school will be perplexed that someone has come up with this revisionist, puerile idea.

“The BBC can’t help themselves. Three quarters of our population are Christian. At the BBC, this proportion is reversed.

“You have a huge proportion of militant, liberal atheists who are keen to dump on Christianity.

“They
wouldn’t mock the birth of Muhammad , or anything to do with his life
story. They wouldn’t ridicule Hinduism or Sikhism, but Christianity is
their big target.”

Defending the drama, Mr Jordan, 52, said: “The story is told using modern language and the characters have modern attitudes.

“Personally,
I believe in the immaculate conception but I think it’s perfectly
understand­able if people struggle with the concept. I think the
questions asked in our drama are the kind that any man watching a
prime-time TV drama in 2010 would quite reasonably ask.

“I
think it perfectly believable that Joseph should get angry with his
betrothed and only agree to take her with him to Bethlehem when she
risks being stoned by angry neighbours.

“If my
own wife came to me and said: ‘Tony, I’m having a baby which isn’t
yours but, don’t worry, I was visited by the Angel Gabriel and it’s
actually God’s baby,’ I think I would feel more than a little miffed.”

“Don’t forget that those who wrote the gospels were doing so from a distance of 200 years.

“I
am doing the same thing – interpreting an event that took place a long
time ago – and I don’t see why my version of the story shouldn’t be
valid, too.”

Actress Tatiana Maslany, 25, who
plays Mary, said: “If you took the names Mary and Joseph out, it could
be a story about any two people in love.

“It
isn’t so much about the belief in God, but the belief in enduring love,
in love that can hold people together even in the most difficult
circumstances.”

Garrow’s Law star Andrew
Buchan, who plays Joseph, said: “Joseph is a real man in our story.
He’s like a guy in 2010 who goes away and comes back to find his wife
or girlfriend pregnant.

“Of course he’s going to think she has slept with another guy and challenge her.”

A
Church of England spokesman said: “Tony Jordan’s adaptation presents a
gritty interpretation of the events of the first Christmas.

“We hope it will bring home the story of Jesus being born in a humble stable to many new ­viewers.”